By Bethany Barrett

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Oh To Be Sewing Again!

It’s been quite some time, hasn’t it? Well I’m back! I’m sewing again, with lots of projects coming up.

Today I’ll go over my Deer and Doe skirt, as well as a simple petticoat. I didn’t make them to go together, especially considering the skirt doesn’t actually need a petticoat. Made out of denim, and an a line shape, I don’t think you could even stick one under there except for decoration.

To start: The Skirt

I already have plans for multiples of this skirt. I love the shape, the fit, and the fact that it’s a high waisted skirt. High waisted fashions seem to be loved or hated with me falling into the former category. Shorts, pants, skirts, high waisted pieces are just supremely flattering in my opinion. Thankfully my boyfriend agrees. Again, sorry for the somewhat crummy pictures, lighting in Portland is not easy to work with. The ‘halo’ around my head is actually the lamp! I thought it was funny. You’ll also notice my work area is a mess. I left it like that because I feel most people don’t have a picture perfect setup or that it is indeed constantly clean and tidy. This is my true workspace and I’m not ashamed to show it off!

This pattern was very simple as well in my experience. It says for intermediate sewers on the envelope but I think a beginner would have no trouble with it. It is lined, and needs an invisible zipper, with the instructions easily explaining those steps.

What I found to be most frustrating was how to style it! The website shows the model wearing a longer, tight fitting shirt but for a more summery or casual look I experimented. I do like it with a tank top and was also happy to show my nerdy side. The shirt says Hogwarts Alumni with the crest in the middle of the shirt, something the skirt covers up.

To Finish: The Petticoat

My favorite part of this project is the confidence it gave me to make more petticoats of different styles, shapes, and materials.

The yoke is just basic lining fabric and the tulle isn’t anything special either. The elastic for the waist is 1.5″ I believe and when put together it makes for a cheap yet effective petticoat! This is also one of the cheaper projects. I used about 6 yards of tulle, and when it’s on sale it can be as cheap as a dollar a yard, with elastic being a couple bucks for a few yards, and lining (of which I needed a yard) can be 5 dollars or less depending on the brand and sale. So this petticoat was about 8 dollars because I only needed to buy the tulle, everything else was already in my stash. Not bad!

The shape was a little flat, so I went ahead and added more near the top.Now it has a sort of bell shape, with more volume up top and leveling out toward the bottom. I have barely enough tulle left to make a second tier but I think I will, just to get more near the bottom. Or I might take the top tier and move it down. That’s something for later though, as I’ve gotten tired of the tulle and want to work on some personal projects while I can.

Simple elastic casing, french seams where possible.

Wayward thread! But check out that french seam!

Upside down but easy enough to see how simple it is.

Sans petticoat

With petticoat

Sans petticoat

With petticoat

It’s actually a nice shape but not as common I think, so I’d like to get that lower tier to make the bottom come out a bit farther.

Like I said though, I have some fun projects coming up! I’ll be making a dress for my boyfriend’s mother for a wedding she’s going to (that I wish I could go to as well), as well as the bridesmaid dresses for the wedding I am in as maid of honor.

Aside from that, I’m working on Simplicity S0210, a 70’s dress, and I just finished up Simplicity S1460, a 50’s shirt with peplum. I’ll blog about that later, for now I’m going to finish cutting out S0210!

I’m glad to be back to blogging, it’ll be nice to be cataloging my progress again.